I'll Be Home for Christmas
by LeBratPrincess
Summary: Co-authored with DrowsyFantasy. Part 10 of the Not Over Yet series.On the run from Lynch on Christmas eve, the A-Team take refuge in an unlikely place and get a chance to enjoy the holiday.
1. Chap 1: Let it Snow

**Disclaimer: **We do not own this, but if we did it would be much fun.

**Authors' Notes: **Firstly, we know this is after Christmas, but holidays tend to be busy times so... also it's on the short side, as will be the next one. HOWEVER we've got a longer story planned here soon with all sorts of drama and such going down. So belatedly, Merry Christmas everyone.

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**I'll Be Home for Christmas**

**_Part 10 of the Not Over Yet Series_**

_I am dreaming tonight of a place I love  
Even more than I usually do  
And although I know it's a long road back  
I promise you__  
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_**

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This was not ideally how Charissa wanted to spend her Christmas holidays by running from the Government and a part of her deep down a very small part knew it could be stopped. But she couldn't do that, she would never do that. End of story.

So here they were in middle of now where Illinois trying to get away from new Lynch and his people. It was the first time she had been on an actual job with them and it had been fun until the local authorities had decided to turn them in for the profit of it. Money sells now days.

"We're never gonna lose'em guys." B.A. grumbled as he drove his van through snow and sadly without chains, "Come on baby." He whispered to it, patting the dashboard, "Don't kill us." He muttered as he skidded around a corner, his dark knuckles lightening as he gripped the steering wheel tight.

Lynch shook his head as he pursued the A-Team, "Idiots." He muttered, amused they hadn't thought about chains, but then again he hadn't exactly given them time now did he, "Faster.

There's a switchback turn coming up, we'll have them then."

"But sir…"

"Do it."

"Come on, come on." Murdock was urging the vehicle, casting nervous glances between their driver, who seemed white-knuckled against the steering wheel, and Face, who was holding a damp cloth to his forehead. The con-man was pale, coughing a bit. He'd contracted some sort of fever from running naked in the snow while trying to get away from them before he caught up. As it was, he was wrapped in several blankets and whatever warm clothing they were able to grab before they were forced into the mountainous areas.

"How are we doing back there?" Hannibal turned from the front seat where he sat, one hand planted firmly on the dashboard for stability.

"We're doing..." Charissa muttered, shaking her head at Face but then also trying not to laugh. It had been one of the funniest things she had ever witnessed really, "okay, I think." A small hint of a giggle slipped out.

B.A. was still trying to forget the mental image that Sosa found so damned amusing. Now he understood what Murdock had felt like in Hawaii in a way, "Uh oh." He took his foot of the gas suddenly making the van begin to slow but it wasn't enough.

"Why are we slo-"

"Hang on!" B.A. interrupted the woman as he felt his beautiful van begin to fish tail in the snow as they rounded the corner and hit what he feared they were going to sooner or later… a switchback. The van skidded the opposite way and began to slide down the embankment as he tried desperately to keep them from flipping at least. If that happened everyone was walking. As it was, they could dig the van out of snow and he did have chains, which he was mentally cursing himself for having not put on the second it had started snowing.

The CIA came around the corner at a much safer speed, "skid marks in the snow." Lynch pointed with an almost smile crossing his face.

"How did you…"

"Like I said, they're idiots. And now they're mine." He waited until his driver stopped their SUV and stepped out into the cold air with a small shiver, "I hate snow."

Charissa tried to help brace herself and Face in the back as the van slid down the slope and into a wall of snow. She would never look at skiing quite the same way again after doing it in a large van, "Great. They've got us, we've been had." She muttered.

"Maybe. Maybe not." Hannibal was pointing above them. "The wind is picking up and it's getting dark. B.A., turn off those headlights and just let us slide a bit...that way..." he pointed, gesturing for the big man to turn the wheel slightly to guide them. "If we can get far enough down this way, the blowing snow will obscure the tracks and we'll be able to move more quickly once they've lost us."

Face moaned and pressed the cloth to his eyes. He was burning a little.

"Sure thing Bossman." B.A. didn't argue much when Hannibal had a plan that did not involve flying… which was less often than the Sergeant liked. He shifted the wheel and made a small face as his baby gave a bit of a groan in protest to the movement.

In the mean time, Charissa checked Face's temperature and frowned, "Hannibal, we need to get him somewhere before he gets worse. I'm worried, he's really burning up." She didn't like seeing Face like this, one because it wasn't him and two he was the biggest baby ever when sick.

Lynch took his time strolling up to the edge of the small drop off that the van had to have slid over. Behind him men with guns were taking positions to be safe. He had them, he was going to make sure they never got away again, "Send down a team." He directed to one of his upper men.

Instantly a group of six men slowly began to make their way down the small slope.

"Uh oh. They're sendin' someone down here t'find us." B.A. grumbled, this wasn't going to work… they were screwed, but then again he had always been a little pessimistic.

"We just have to make sure they don't." Hannibal pointed out, looking at the door. "Even if we have to get out and push." he glanced back at Charissa and Face. "I'm sorry we can't get somewhere a bit more civilized. We may have to camp out here until they leave." he gestured up the slope at the small crowd.

Face shook his head. "I'll be fine." he tried to settle down, but only coughed more.

Charissa grumbled inwardly but said nothing. Face was being better about it all than she had figured he would be really, but it still didn't take the edge off her worry.

"Relax Girl, Faceman's toughed through worse." B.A. assured her and kept an eye on the men coming down with their guns, "Hmm… I think it's workin' out."

The point man paused and held up his hand in signal to halt their process any further as he scanned the area and frowned very noticeably, "Sir." He spoke into his headset, "I think they made it. There's no sign of them."

"Damnit." Lynch frowned and began to pace. He wasn't as violently upset as his predecessor was, he was calmer on the outside anyways, "Give the area a thorough search." He instructed.

"Yes sir."

B.A. frowned hard as the men began to continue their descent again, "Persistent Fools."

Murdock was itching to get out and do something, but he kept still, waiting for instructions.

Hannibal was well aware of his team's anxiety, but kept silent and calm. "As long as we stay put, and don't attract attention to ourselves, we can stay hidden." he noticed the temperature was dropping slightly in the van and tapped the dashboard. "As soon as they're gone, we have to turn up the heat in here, and get moving." he turned back to Face. "Do either of you have anything with GPS in it? Or can you find out where the nearest service road is?"

B.A. nodded and shifted in his seat, "So glad I got outta this state when I did. Damn snow."

"I have my cell phones." Charissa spoke up and dug into her bag and got them both out, "Hmm. No service on the one…" She gave Face a glance, "Why is it that the phones that you give me always get service every where?" She questioned both in amusement and honest curiosity.

After a moment or two she had the GPS application up and was looking things over, "South from here about five miles."

"Hannibal… they're getting closer." B.A. whined ever so slightly in a nervous manner.

"Bosco, we're gonna be fine." Murdock murmured, though he wasn't sure at all about it. He was shifting back and forth from foot to foot, trying to watch out the back window.

The snow squalls were becoming much more fierce now, and the visibility was nearing zero - especially with the sun having completely vanished from the sky by now.

The point man shook his head, "Sir." He spoke into his direct link to Lynch again, "There's no point to this. Even if they're out here we won't find them in this white shit."

Unfortunately his man was right and Lynch sighed, "Fine. We'll get back on their trail tomorrow." With that he turned back to the car he had been riding in and got back inside.

"Yes! They're giving up." B.A. was almost dancing in his seat.

"I second that burst of enthusiasm." Charissa called up from the back, "Are we actually going to be able to get out of here or are we stuck for the night?"

A hand was ran over B.A. Mohawk as he thought a moment or two, "Well if they get outta here fast enough and maybe Crazy Man and I can slip out and get the chains on…" He glanced to his CO as he left the sentence hanging.

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**Poor Face. And if you want a clue as to where this story goes check out the cover on my profile, if not then sit tight for the surprise. :)**

**We love hearing from you all!**


	2. Chap 2: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

**Authors' Notes: **Here's the next chapter! We'll be posting this one quickly because we wrote a small New Year's fic, which Drowsy will be posting. And then some time after the first of the year we will be starting on our next major story. And thanks to all those who have reviewed, nice to know we're picking up some new readers. :) Now on with the show.

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Hannibal nodded. "We'll make sure everything is ready-to-go, right Murdock?" he glanced back at the pilot, who nodded with a grin, chains already in his hands. He gave them a small rattle.

"I wear the chain I forged in life," he moaned, "I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will...I wore it. O! Captive bound and double-ironed!" he continued. "not to know, that ages of incessant labor, by immortal creatures, for this earth must pass into eternity before the good of which it is susceptiable is all developed. Not to know that any Christian spirit working kindly in its little sphere, whatever it may be, will find its mortal life too short for its vast means of usefulness. Not to know that no space of regret can make amends for one life's oppertunity missed! Yet such was I! O! Such was I..." he finished, dramatically rattling his chains. "Expect the first ghost when the bell tolls one!"

B.A. just shook his head and rolled his eyes, "Let's get to it Jacob Marley."

"You know what that was from?" Charissa blinked at B.A., the man could surprise the hell out of her at times he really could.

"Sure. A Christmas Carol." He gave a shrug of his large shoulders and worked his way out of his van after grabbing some of the chains from Murdock and got to work on the front driver's side tire.

Charissa sat back and glanced at Face, "Learn something new every day around you guys."

Luckily by now for them, Lynch was long gone, back to the sleepy town they had started out in.

Hannibal chuckled. "Face'll have to get you the DVD for Christmas this year, when we make it back." he slid into the driver's seat temporarily and adjusted the heating, allowing the engines to hum a little louder as they idled quietly in the darkened wooded area.

Murdock and B.A. made good use of their time and quickly put the chains on each of the tires, although the pilot had a hard time keeping up with the burlier man in the snow.

B.A. didn't hear Hannibal's amusing comment as he worked to get the chains on and also to keep Murdock from sinking up to his neck in the damn snow, "Hate this shit." He kept muttering over and over again.

"It'll be a belated Christmas at that." Charissa added, "It's the 24th today." Her eyes shifted down to Face again, a small smirk across her lips, "And it'll be even more so for you Mister." She was still amused and figured she'd probably have to pay for said amusement at some point.

After helping get the last tire taken care of, B.A. wandered up to the driver's side and tapped the window, "Murdock an' I'll give'er a push. You hit the gas Boss." He instructed.

"Merry fuckin' white Christmas." Face glared at the snow and sneezed. The fever had drained but had left behind what he could already tell was going to be a nasty head cold. "I am not shoveling this shit when we get back."

"No one's going to make you. In fact, I think you'll be too busy snuggled up in your pink bunny jammies with a cup of hot cocoa and - " Murdock was cut off by Face's wet towel in the eyes. "Yikes!"

B.A. caught Face's lament and laughed heartedly, "Poor Faceman." He said with a grin and went to the back of the van, "Ready Crazy Man?"

She bit her lip hard and tried so hard not to laugh, but failed, "I'm sorry Face but you're adorable when you're mad and sick." Charissa mused.

"On the count of three." B.A. said loud enough for Hannibal to hear, "One… two… three!" On the three, B.A. shifted all his weight against the back of his van, "Come on Baby, move for Daddy."

On "three", Hannibal floored it. For the first few seconds, it was a heart-wrenching empty squeal. And then, slowly, the van began to move.

Murdock gave a whoop of delight as he felt it move away, and nearly toppled over in teh sliding snow. "I'm going to be froze to my toes if we don't get back in there!"

B.A. nodded in agreement, "Move your skinny ass then." He suggested and high tailed it to the passenger side letting Hannibal drive for the moment at least until they got onto an actual road again. He trusted Hannibal to drive Face not so much and Murdock definitely not. He wasn't sure about letting Charissa drive either… it would be odd to let a girl drive his Baby.

"Good job guys." She had pondered helping out, but figured the best place for her to be was making sure Face behaved himself for the time being, "So where are we going to go?" She was looking at her cell phone for another reason, "A really bad storm is moving over the Midwest and east coast… which means we're in trouble."

"Damn snow. Half of the reason I was glad t'head south an' join up with the Forces." B.A. shook his head and then an idea hit him, "How far are we from Chicago? I know a place we can go."

"Hmm." She switched from the weather back to the GPS and looked it over, "Few hours give or take, why? Who do you know in Chicago?"

In that moment B.A. got a very odd smile across his face, "My Momma. That's who." He chuckled a bit, "She'll be glad to see me, been wantin' me to visit for a while." He looked to Hannibal, "If that works alright that is."

"Pink bunny pajamas on both of you..." Murdock murmured from the back, only to get whacked again by Face, though the con-man was amused by the thought of big B.A. in the nightmare suit.

Hannibal raised an eyebrow. "If she'll take us in, I have no issue with that." he squinted through the windshield as they drove along the service road. "Aha. I see the turnoff and there's the highway..."

"Smack'im again for me Faceman."

"Don't make me start in with the Rudolph the red nosed Reindeer jokes, Face." Charissa grinned and eyed his nose very pointedly which was rather red.

Sadly B.A. couldn't help it and started humming the tune for the very popular yuletide song as he watched the road, "Get us on the main road an' if you want I can take back over the drivin'." He offered before returning to hum the tune again with a snicker.

"I will kill you. All of you." Face glared his best, but it was interrupted by a massive chain of sneezes, ending in a pained moan.

"Mmm, momma's chicken soup would be good." Murdock glanced over at B.A. who was changing places with Hannibal for highway travel. "What about hot cocoa and marhsmallows?"

Luckily for her, Charissa had quick reflexes and managed to avoid being sneezed on and grabbed a box of Kleenex and handed them to Face, "Settle down before you make yourself worse, Dear." She chided him lightly, still highly amused however.

B.A. sighed as he got back into his rightful seat and drove, he knew how to get home with his eyes closed, "Just hang tight Faceman, my Momma will fix you right up." He promised.

"What is your Mom like, B.A.?" Charissa was highly curious.

"She's the greatest. Strict as hell, but a great woman." He said almost wistfully, "An' she bakes like a mad woman this time of year. Mmm homemade ginger bread cookies."

A hint of jealousy towards B.A. budded within Charissa a little in that moment, "Lucky you." She said almost flatly and sat back becoming silent.

Murock glanced at Charissa, curious for a moment, but said nothing. Instead he poked his head through the front seats and looked out the window at the snow, which had settled at this point for a gentle falling pace. "Much easier to see now." he observed.

Hannibal nodded, tapping the dashboard. "And better for the engine, too."

"Please. My Baby can handle this." He caressed the dashboard and gave the steering wheel a kiss, "Such a good girl, you'll get top of the line oil on your next change." He promised in a soothing voice one might use to talk to a pet or a child.

Charissa grumbled at herself and forced herself to swallow back her sudden mood change. She really needed to get over her issues, but something like that wasn't easy to get over, especially when no one else exactly understood or knew about it. But the latter was never going to happen really, she didn't like to flaunt her personal issues. She just blamed her slip up on the fact she was tired and it had been a long day.

"Do you think we could turn the heat up just a bit?" She asked leaning forward, her bout of moodiness gone.

B.A. nodded, "Sure thing." He turned the dial up a little and kept his focus on the road. A few hours later and not much traffic oddly enough to him, they made it into the Chicago city limits, "We'll be there inna bout twenty." He assured them.

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**Well the surprise is out of the bag, y'all are gonna meet Mrs. Baracus! **

**Don't forget to drop a review, we love hearing from you guys!**


	3. Chap 3: Home for Christmas

**Authors' Notes: **So glad everyone is enjoying this story so far! We had fun writing it. Now for a quick reply to a new anon reviewer :)

Crazypilotluv: Oh wow! Thank you! And yeah we love paying homage to the tv show so we figured what better way than Mama B! :D And yours is the longest review we've ever gotten! So A-Team plushies plus a Charissa plushie for you!

And I personally am blushing for your kind comment about my Charissa.

And we would love to do that! Anyone know Joe Carnahan? lol But we hope all us fans at least get a sequel none the less and that it is written good by whomever gets that honor. :)

Rock on to you too!

Now on with the next chapter!

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"Good thing too, I need a change of clothing." Face had sweated out the fever and the blankets, while warm, were uncomfortably damp against his skin. And he didn't want to be naked again, even if the only people to see him were his teammates and Charissa. That somehow made it more awkward.

Murdock had been napping slightly, curled up on a spare blanket almost like a dog, cap pulled down over his eyes and snorted softly when he was bumped awake by a sudden halt due to traffic lights.

A small sigh of relief left Charissa's lips as she place a hand gently on Face's forehead and found him to be much cooler to the touch, a while ago she could barely put her hand against his skin he was so damned hot. She didn't mention this out loud not really wanting to hear him make a crack about how she could normally touch him since he's always hot or something like that.

"His fever is gone." She reported to them and sat back, glancing towards the front of the van as they sat at the light.

"Good. Now here's hopin' we don't end up with his stuff since we've all be exposed t'him. I have bein' sick." B.A. stated and he really didn't want his Momma to have to take care of him or his sick teammates. Though he did feel bad for Face's predicament even if it had kind of been his own damn fault.

When the light changed, B.A. headed down the street and made a turn onto what looked like one of the older parts of the city maybe even a little rundown too, "Great. Now y'all get to see where Bad Attitude Baracus grew up." He didn't sound overly thrilled about the idea, but whatever. Sad thing was he forgot about something else too, the fact he had a nickname previous to B.A.

Hannibal smiled a small private smile. He'd seen B.A. in action now, frightening places, and they'd come out just fine. It was really amazing to know this guy, he decided, to know and survive, anyhow.

Murdock sat up in his blanket, glancing at Face and Charissa with baleful eyes. "Keep the plague away, please, won't you doc?" he blinked. "It's the bad air."

"If anyone gets his stupid cold it will probably be me." Charissa stated matter-of-factly about the matter, "I've had the most… er… exposure to him after all." Unfortunately she couldn't think of a better alternative for wording that.

A snicker left B.A. before he could stop it, "That's true. An' by the way no feel better business at my Momma's you two. Best behavior I mean it. " The large man warned them with a strict eyed look from the rearview mirror as the van came to a stop in front of a set of apartments with individual entrances.

"Yessir." Face gave a half-hearted salute, then tugged up the blankets as they fell. He really didn't have anything on, and even though layers of warmth surrounded him, he did feel quite naked.

Hannibal fingered his cigars, then looked over at B.A. for a moment, not sure if he should go ahead. If his mother was anything like the son, and she didn't like the smell...he might be out in the cold.

Getting Face out of the van was going to be interesting; Charissa mused but kept it to herself for the time being, "I'll behave if he does." She promised. In all honesty they could in fact behave themselves well enough. She slipped forward in the van and checked out the childhood home of B.A. curiously, "Will she have enough room for all of us?"

B.A. nodded, "Yeah. One extra bedrooms plus the sofa bed." He stated and then eyed Hannibal, "Momma don't allow smokin' in the house. But there's a back porch." He promised and got out stretching, "Home sweet home." He kept himself from racing up the steps and instead took the walk to his old front door in a leisurely pace and waited for the others to join him.

Hannibal was about to protest that he wouldn't smoke inside anyone else's house, but figured it would be a useless statement and merely followed, watching as Murdock helped Charissa hoist Face up and keep him swathed in blankets until they got to the front door.

"Doing all right in there?"

Face let out a few choice words, then fell silent as someone came to the door.

Before B.A. could turn around and knock the door had opened, "Is that my Scooter?" Large soft looking black arms wrapped around the Sergeant who did turn as he heard the one thing he had forgotten about leave his Momma's lips.

"Hey Momma." He hugged the woman back, almost lifting her off her feet before stepping aside, "I brought some friends. The ones I've written about."

As B.A. stepped back the woman was revealed. She stood about a head shorter than her son, she had kind warm brown eyes and graying tightly curled hair pulled back into a bun. She wore a dress with an apron over it and a large smile across her face, "Glad to finally meet my boy's friends. Come inside; get out of this terrible cold." She stepped back allowing them room to enter.

B.A. led the way and stopped just inside and closed his eyes taking a deep breath and inhaling the smells of Christmas baking, "Oh Momma you've been bakin'."

"Scooter move on and let your friends come inside. Especially that poor man in the blankets," She looked at Face, "I would assume you are Face?" She asked and once everyone was inside hurried to the kitchen, "Mrs. Baracus will fix you right up honey, don't worry." She assured as the sound of cupboards and pots and pans filled the air.

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**Sadly this is short tale we're not done yet tho, but be on the look out for the New Year's eve story that Drowsy will be posting!**

**Thanks for all the reviews guys :)**


	4. Chap 4: Deck the Halls

**Authors' Notes: **Drowsy has the New Year's one shot fic up so go check that out, it's pretty good stuff. :) Now one with our next chapter.

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"Scooter?" Murdock shot a glance at Face.

"Scooter." Face confirmed with a nod, then glanced sideways to avoid one of B.A.'s retaliatory punches, but nothing came. Possibly because of where they were, but also because he was suddenly posessed by a violent sneezing fit.

"Murdock, make sure the van's off and safe, then come back and join us." Hannibal nodded.

The pilot saluted and hurried to move the large vehicle off the main road.

Charissa fought hard to keep a look of amusement off her face… Scooter? Really? Hilarious and adorable. She regarded B.A. with a different sort of look, it was hard to picture the big black man as someone's little boy, but he was. Hazel eyes inspected the quaint apartment, it was a home even if it wasn't a house she decided as she traveled towards the various framed pictures. B.A.'s Mom loved him very much, there were pictures all over of him as a child mostly, riding a new bike, playing super-hero with a sheet tied around his neck. A cast on his arm, with a group of friends, she felt an odd swell of pride at seeing the picture of him in full uniform probably having just graduated the academy. He looked dedicated to the cause, one they all shared.

"Don't even start." B.A. barked a little at Face and Murdock as his Mother came up behind him and tugged his ear.

"Don't talk to your friends like that." In her hands, Mrs. Baracus held a tray that had a large bowl of chicken noodle soup on it and some odd smelling tea, "You sit down right there on the sofa and eat up." She ordered Face as she placed the tray down on the coffee table and watched him to make sure he did as told.

Face nodded gratefully once he was able to, slunk to the sofa and plunked himself down. He removed the old blanket and took one of the afghans off the back of her couch, wrapping himself in that while B.A. presumably went to find him something to wear. It would probably be about seven sizes too big - the man was built like a football player and all the fashion sense of a turnip - but it would be warm and dry at the very least.

After a few moments, B.A. reappeared after having gone down the hallway and handed Face a pile of clothes, "Tried t'find some of my stuff from when I was younger so they'd be more your size."

"How did you break your arm, B.A.?" Charissa was still looking at the pictures, now of ones with him in the field, before the A-Team. He looked different, but maybe because he was a bit younger then.

"I didn't break it…" He glanced to his Mother; B.A. knew she didn't like this story, "I got shot. Bullet went into the bone." He rubbed his arm at the memory of how painful it had been.

"Sit down. Make yourselves at home. Go on. I'll bring out some coffee and fresh gingerbread cookies." Mrs. Baracus spoke up and bustled off to the kitchen with a frown on her face.

"Momma doesn't like that story; she left so I can tell you." B.A. explained, "It was a year or so before I enlisted. It was my wake-up call that if I wanted to use guns and beat people up I needed a better cause than jus' someone lookin' at me wrong." He said no more on the subject, he really wasn't proud of the kid he had been either anymore.

"Gingerbread!" Murdock had re-appeared and was following his nose into the kitchen, not caring if she wanted to shoo him out. It smelled amazing in there.

Hannibal took it all in silence, resting on an overstuffed arm chair opposite the main couch that Face had sat down on. The con-man was helping himself to more soup, not really waiting for it to cool off. He was, after all, hungry.

By now Charissa had moved away from the photographs which had stopped shortly after a picture of him and the other guys, probably not long after they had first met and Hannibal had gotten B.A. reinstated. That was another story she wanted to hear, however now wasn't the time. She moved over and settled on the sofa by Face, "Careful, don't burn your tongue." She warned him.

"Murdock, Yes?" Mrs. Baracus asked as the strange man came into her kitchen, "You wanna help me, child?" She smiled at him and didn't wait for an answer, if he was in her kitchen he was going to help, "In that cupboard there to your right, "She pointed near his head, "there's some coffee mugs get some down and pour coffee into them." She instructed kindly.

"Yes'm!" Murdock made himself useful; this involved juggling mugs because there were too many for his hands. Once he'd gotten enough out of the cupboards, he began pouring drinks. Deciding not to juggle them now, he carried them carefully out to the others.

Face by now had eaten about half, and was much warmer. He regarded the clothing B.A. had brought out and nodded. They looked as though they would fit, and he'd change in a few minutes once he had a little more.

"So do you have a first name? Or are you like some of them famous folk, just one name?" Mrs. Baracus asked curiously, trying to get to know her son's friends a little more, "In his letters, Bosco only mentions you by Murdock or Crazy Man. Are you really crazy?" She was busy making sure there was enough cookies for everyone on the platter before placing it on a second tray and heading out into the living room again and eying Face, "You doing better?"

Charissa smiled to the woman warmly, "Thank you for taking us in."

"Not a problem honey, and now I have an excuse to break out my tree and decorations. Normally I don't bother with just me, but now I've got help." Mrs. Baracus said with a smile, "Go find our decorations son and take Murdock with you." She instructed, "He's a good help."

Murdock gave her a rare, calm smile - one he reserved for more serious moments - and winked his eye. "Now ma'am, that would be telling."

"Excuse me." Face went to go change in the bathroom, taking a moment to run hot water though his hair and towel it dry. He felt a little better now, sweat gone and dry warmth replacing it. He headed back out to help Hannibal ready space for the tree.

"Oh, a man of mystery." Mrs. Baracus gave Murdock an amused wink before sitting down next to Charissa, "We'll tell them just where we want things." She assured the younger woman and offered her a cookie.

"Thank you." She wondered if B.A.'s Mother knew she felt out of place currently and was trying to make her comfortable. She took a decent bite of the cookie and smiled at how good it truly was, "These are excellent." Charissa exclaimed.

"You're welcome, Charissa."

Charissa blinked, "How do you?"

"Know your name? Scooter writes still, tells me a lot of things." The older woman said with a knowing smile that made Charissa sheepishly look away from her and take a drink of coffee.

After escorting Murdock with him down the hall, B.A. paused in the middle and reached up and pulled down a trap door and let down a wooden ladder, "Go on up." B.A. gestured to the ladder, " I don't fit up there."

"Aww, crammin' ol' Murdock into the attic, huh?" the pilot pouted at the burly man, putting his hands on the railings and sighing. "I suppose it's where I belong...battier'n'the bats in the belfry, or is that got bats in the belfry or - " he scooted up before B.A. could retaliate.

Crazy fool, B.A. thought to himself as he waited to be handed things, "Be careful with that stuff, some of those decorations are older than you or me."

"Face… are you sure you feel up to what you're doing?" Sosa was trying not to be overly concerned or worried, but he was sick still after all.

"He'll be alright, look he's not quite as pale as he was when you all first got here, not that it was easy to tell." Mrs. Baracus looked the Lieutenant over, "Do you live on the beach?" She questioned with some amusement and some seriousness.

"I wish." Face grumbled a bit, settling back down onto the couch and helping himself to some cookies. They really were very good. "I don't get too much time to relax nowadays..."

Murdock emerged carefully with box after box, treating them with the same delicate care one would normally reserve for tiny infants or glass. As it so happened, Murdock figured that many of the objects would be glass - or equally light - so he kept to his best.

"Poor dear." Mrs. Baracus patted his knee, "Maybe one day they'll clear your names-"She looked at Charissa, "Can't you do anything, don't you work for the government?"

It was a bit shocking this hadn't come up sooner or at least to Charissa, "It's not that easy and it's the CIA that is chasing them, though I know for a fact they've been working in tandem with my department as far as intel goes." She said nothing else on that subject, "As it is, because of my…" she searched for the proper term, "involvement, "It wasn't the right word exactly but it worked none the less, "I have to keep a low profile concerning these guys."

"Your lives are way too complicated." Mrs. Baracus shook her head and helped herself to a cookie.

"You get lost up there, fool?" Came B.A.'s impatient tone from the hallway when finally Murdock emerged and he took some of the boxes from the Captain, "There's a few more." He stated and then took the boxes in hand into the living room.

"Gotcha." Murdock scrounged for the remaining boxes and returned with them, gently unpacking and handing various things out.

Hannibal managed to get the tinsel going without having to stand on a chair - being tall really did come in handy for the strangest things.

Face eventually got off the couch as well and began to put baubles and lights on.

"I think I'll help… I miss decorating the tree and so on." Charissa decided that helping meant less talking and she felt more comfortable that way, doing something. She helped put ornaments on the tree, being very careful with them. Some of them looked to be very homemade or handed down.

A few moments later, B.A. after fiddling with the stereo had Christmas music filling the air, "This is nice." He commented and grabbed the old and worn star for the top of the tree and got it situated, careful not to get in anyone else's way.

Once she was certain they wouldn't break anything or cause a problem, Mrs. Baracus stole away into the kitchen and began finishing preparations on some things for the dinner tomorrow, especially now that she had extra people. Normally she invited her neighbors over, but now she had family present which was a much welcome and nice change.

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**The guys and Charissa are getting an honest break for once! A nice change for them and Drowsy and mine's gift to the lot. **

**:) Hope everyone had a safe and fun New Year!**

**Don't forget to drop us a line.**


	5. Chap 5: Here Comes Santa Claus

**Authors' Notes: **This is the last chapter, but I'm going to make a small epilogue to tie things up and if you haven't check out the New Year's Eve story Drowsy posted then go do it now.

And on with the show. :)

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Murdock knew all the words to every song, and was singing along, either quiet or extremely loud, almost operatic in nature when it came to the more ridiculous.

Even Hannibal found it difficult to keep his normally stoic expression firmly in place.

Face was snickering and outright laughing at times, but they were all careful with the decorations.

So this was what it was like to have Christmas with a family… not that her Father hadn't tried, but in the end she usually spent the eve and day alone. Charissa didn't hold it against the man who had raised her however, because she understood he had done it so she was comfortable. But now she understood what she had missed and it was nice, wonderful actually. She laughed at Murdock, even managed to sing a line or two with him to her own favorites.

Even B.A. didn't get annoyed at the zany captain for once, he too chuckled and amused at his outrageous singing tactics and even joined in himself a few times mostly off key and odd sounding, "Forgot how much I miss Christmas at home." He stated almost misty eyed as he worked on getting the stockings to stay over the small fireplace his Mother had.

"It's pretty good with a family like this." Murdock nodded, gently adjusting one of the strings of lights so that a paper decoration wasn't too close. LED bulbs these days didn't get too hot, he had a feeling that if they pushed it, they were toast. "Folks that really do care."

"Family is what you make it," Face argued, mind ticking back to years in the orphanage. Good people there, too. "Family's whoever you feel safe with."

"Why Face," Hannibal mused, "I didn't know you could be so deep."

The conman shot him a half-hearted glare.

The Sergeant gave a nod, "Well put y'all." He grinned a bit, the training in Georgia had had an effect on his vocabulary, "And it is good to spend it with family."

"Agreed." Charissa spoke up, as she knelt down to put some ornaments on the bottom branches of the tree, "We should make a habit of this."

"I'd love to have you all every year." Mrs. Baracus had returned from the kitchen with yet another tray, this one had eggnog on it and a special warm drink just for Face, which she gave to him, "You drink this, it will knock you flat but you'll feel much better in the morning. Drink up kids then it's time for bed or Santa won't come." The older woman teased lightly.

"Santa?" Murdock gasped. "I never wrote a letter this year!" his hands flew to the sides of his face in shock and horror. "I completely forgot!"

"Murdock, Santa is magic." Hannibal placed a reassuring hand on the pilot's shoulder. "Besides. I'm sure you can write one next year."

Face took the drink and sat before he took a drink, pleased at the taste and the warmth spreading through him. "Mmm. Perfect mix. Perfect balance."

"Of course it is." Mrs. Baracus chuckled and gave his cheek a gentle pat.

B.A. shook his head, "Not like you've been a good boy," He teased Murdock, "So it's a good thin' you didn't write no letter."

The eggnog was rich and creamy, Charissa enjoyed it, "You are quite the cook, Mrs. Baracus."

"Thank you sweetheart, I'm sure you do fine yourself."

Charissa about choked on her drink, "Not even. I can barely toast bread without burning it."

Murdock was glaring daggers at B.A. "I've been good!" he huffed. "Better'n SOME folks who just want to pick on poor ol' Murdock."

Hannibal helped himself to another cookie with his drink, relaxing again and finally allowing himself to glance around the room. Framed photos, interesting times and a glimse into B.A.'s past which he hadn't really seen. Tucking a few images away into his mind for later contemplation, he found the seargent's mother again and nodded. "Very nicely done, thank you again."

"You be nice Bosco Albert." His Mother chided him as she shook her head, "Murdock is a nice boy, helpful."

"Sorry Momma, can't resist and sure he's nice enough but you don't hafta deal with him all the time." B.A. gave mocking daggers back at Murdock and even growled a little at him before laughing.

"Your middle name is Albert?" Charissa hid her amusement; it just didn't seem to fit, "So that could also explain the B.A."

"No. It does not. B.A. stands for Bad Attitude." He stated matter-of-factly.

"If you say so." Sosa said with a small snicker.

Face and Murdock exchanged looks, refrained from laughing, and Hannibal had to excuse himself at that point.

"Are we just...sleeping on couches?" Face finally inquired, feeling more sleepy than he wanted to admit.

Bosco rolled his eyes at the amusement everyone was having at his expense, nothing new but he'd get them back somehow. He finished a few odds and ends of decorating, still remembering where and how his Mother liked things.

"No. Well some of you will have to, but I do have the spare bedroom and Scooter has his bedroom and it's just the way he left it when he went off to the army." She stated the last almost wistfully. She turned her attention to both Face and Charissa, "You two can take the spare bedroom, no fooling Mama Baracus. I know you two are together." She said knowingly.

A flush crept across Charissa's cheeks, not because she was embarrassed but because she didn't think it was obvious. She and Face never really acted like they were together, did they? Her eyes slid towards Face with a small shrug, "Okay…"

"Don't mind my Momma, she thinks she knows everything. But I've mentioned you two in my letters a few times. She's not as mysterious as she tries to be." He chuckled only to feel sharp pinch at his arm.

"Don't you be ruining my fun." His Mother chided him yet again for probably not the last time during their stay.

"Funny," Face said as they left the main room for the spare, "I figured she'd want to split us up since she knew we were together." he pointed out, amused.

Hannibal turned down the lights as Murdock made a nest for himself in blankets on the other couch. "You can leave the tree-lights on." he said quietly. "I kinda like that. A little bit of light."

"Certainly." the colonel raised an eyebrow as he flicked the others off, leaving the soft glow of whites and multicolors in the corner near the window. Through the frosted darkness, snow had begun to fall silently.

"'Night."

"I'm trusting you to behave yourselves." B.A. Mother called after them as they headed down the hall, before she headed to her own room.

"Oh trust me, we will. We can." Charissa said the last part in confirmation to the others, she and Face could behave and plus the man needed his rest.

Following close behind them was B.A. himself headed for his room. He came up behind the two of them with his hands on their shoulders and gave them a nice firm squeeze, "And I'll know if you don't seeing as I'm right next door." He grinned and let them go, "Good night."

"For the last time, I am too tired!" Face sighed and gave Charissa a weary glance. "Not tonight, darling, I have a headache," he complained, before letting himself flop onto the bed. He stripped out of the outer clothing and climbed underneath the sheets. It was surprisingly warm and comfy.

It was going to be a never ending joke it seemed and one they'd have to deal with constantly, Charissa was fairly used to it, but she doubted Face would ever be. She removed her jeans and kept the plain white under shirt she had put on beneath her clothes and slid into the bed which was very comfortable and smelled as warm as it felt. She snuggled down into the covers more until the only thing above them was her head before she turned and as usual curled against Face without a word, she was tired too.

The second B.A. hit his old familiar pillows he was out as well, snoring loudly as he slept. It was good to be home, he needed to visit more often and on purpose. He wondered what the morning would bring, he also wondered how long they had before Lynch figured out where they were.

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**Hopefully we'll be starting on our next big story soon for the first story of the year!**

**Anyhow as stated above, a small epilogue will be added soon. Hope you've enjoyed our holiday stories. **


	6. Epilogue: Happy Christmas

**Authors' Notes: **We have come to the end of this tale, I decided to do a few short paragraphs in Charissa's point of view to tie things up. We should get started on the next part soon. :)

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The next morning, we awoke to no other presents than spending time with each other and being alive and really great food. B.A.'s Mother knew how to cook a mean meal and it seemed like there was extra room in all our stomachs. Even mine.

So this was what Christmas was like with a family, and now that I had experienced it I was hooked. I wanted to do it again next year and the year after that. Mrs. Baracus was a rare woman, she made me feel like I belonged there and a part of things. Not that the guys don't make me feel like that all the time, but this was different… this wasn't a gig or a mission. This was as normal as we'd ever get.

Sadly however for Mrs. Baracus' safety we soon had to cut our surprise visit short. I remembered her kind words as we readied to leave, that it had been the best Christmas she'd ever had and we all had agreed as did Face who was pretty much cured of his cold thanks to the woman's knowing ways.

Something told me we'd be back at some point, maybe for Christmas again and actually plan on it and do it right, gifts and all.

We were all a little sad as we drove off, headed for New York. We had figured since we were close enough we'd hit the Big Apple for New Year's, sounds like a fun idea.

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**The End... for now.**


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